


Book Commentary: Ink and Bone

by mlmcg12



Series: Book Blog Transcripts [3]
Category: The Great Library Series - Rachel Caine
Genre: Cross-Posted on WordPress, F/M, M/M, Spoilers
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-12
Updated: 2019-11-04
Packaged: 2021-03-15 22:42:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 4,406
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28946100
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mlmcg12/pseuds/mlmcg12
Relationships: Jess Brightwell/Morgan Hault, Niccolo Santi/Christopher Wolfe
Series: Book Blog Transcripts [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2123052





	1. Ephemera / Prologue

  * An alternate history where books are illegal for the general public is new, but the “girls can’t be scholars” like that Pharaoh wanted sadly isn’t (even in not-alternate universes).
  * Jess’ family involved in book smuggling = obvious important plot point and backstory info. One brother’s already been caught (and apparently executed) for it. 
    * Also, Brendan the twin: He’s gotta be really important to get that much detail about the personality differences, but please don’t let there be a case of mistaken identity leading to massive disaster at any point in the series.
  * The way the cutters are described is an interesting way to introduce how the smuggled books are delivered.
  * Having Jess get chased by the Garda was an exciting bit, but _of course_ , he can’t get caught this early in the game because then there’d be no story.
  * OK, so, Burners = terrorists. 
    * Also possible _Fahrenheit 451_ reference (according to Goodreads reviews? I wouldn’t know. I never actually had to read it for English, and I’m not really intending to.)
  * Enter the first steampunk element with the normally stone lion statues outside big old libraries being library guard automatons that apparently hunt people down and kill them.
  * And now for the rich asshole who actually bought the (crazy-rare) smuggled book from Jess’ family. This mofo just… ate it. WTF?
  * “But it was the world in which he lived, in London, in the year 2025.” _2025, people. The last line of the prologue literally says the prologue is in 2025, and then the main action being six years later makes it in 2031. The only thing that would make the people’s Goodreads tags of “historical fiction” would be the bits in the Ephemera bits._




	2. Ephemera / Chapter One

  * For the ephemera: So this flashback is the beginning of the “books are illegal to the public” thing. Or is it the earliest bit of rebellion against the Library of Alexandria, this AU version of Gutenberg’s press?
  * Here’s more of the brotherly relationship between Jess and Brendan. Brendan’s a bit of an ass. (Actually, make that a lot of an ass.)
  * No, but seriously. Did Brendan find and kill the ink-licker from the prologue after so many years?
  * So, after the older brother was executed for book smuggling, apparently now Jess is supposed to be the one to inherit the family business since he’s the older twin (and the oldest surviving kid in the family)?
  * Plot twist (or not): Mr. Brightwell is planning on shipping Jess off to the Library of Alexandria for work. I doubt the whole spy for the family thing will end well, though.
  * And Jess got into the library. That was… fast. Or efficient? On the one hand, I’m curious about more details about the actual testing process, but on the other, I feel like such a long description would break the flow of the chapter.
  * Is Brendan actually going to miss Jess or not?
  * Of course right when Jess is waiting for the train to go to Alexandria, there’s a terrorist attack from the Burners. Because of course there is. To be fair, the Library’s higher-ups are kinda doing exactly what the Burners’ message is, but… Still no excuse for terrorism.
  * …This dude just burned himself alive? That’s… kinda gruesome.
  * There’s apparently some big thing going on in Wales? An increase in Burner presence? Or general resistance/mass protests/whatever to shitty government?
  * Thomas is cool. I like Thomas.
  * A Muslim girl of color? Who got the only perfect entrance exam score ever in the history of history? YAS, KHALILA!
  * Glain is… not the kind of badass female I’d like. A bit too bitchy already for me, I guess?
  * Wolfe is definitely intimidating. I’ll admit that early in my first readthrough of this, I didn’t like him, but he later started growing on me after a brief blip in one of the ephemera bits. (Also, during my first readthrough, I obliviously missed the fact that Wolfe’s hair is described as _shoulder-length_. I thought it was… shorter? and more severe like his personality?)




	3. Ephemera / Chapter Two

  * So, the Territory of America… Does that mean that the colonies lost the Revolutionary War and are still part of the UK in this universe, or does it mean that America did win but isn’t called “The United States” in this universe? I’d say Thomas Paine’s “seditious writings” would indicate the former if they didn’t talk smack about the Great Library. 
    * But this does add to this series’ take on “teens overthrow the shitty government.”
  * Oh, how Alexandria could’ve been great if the library hadn’t burned… Unless it ends up being the center of a dystopian AU.
  * Yeah, I’m definitely getting a bit of a drill sergeant feel to Wolfe already.
  * Dario already reminds me of Bonzo from _Ender’s Game_. I hated Bonzo.
  * Jess expected school to be like school but of course it’s not.
  * I get the feeling this specific dude from the Garda will be important.
  * This history lesson gives a lot of background about why owning original books is illegal. Also, is Wolfe onto Jess’ family history?
  * Of course nothing’s going to be easy here. This bit’s definitely a lesson in avoiding booby traps.
  * OK, yeah, that one Garda dude is Santi, and he’s definitely important.
  * And here’s Wolfe weeding out all the unnecessary side characters in the first cut.
  * Have I mentioned how much I hate Dario?
  * Khalila’s asking about the Iron Tower. Sounds like Hermione asking about the Chamber of Secrets. We’re really going there already?
  * Yeah, Wolfe’s definitely harsh, but I honestly like him better than Dario.
  * OK, yeah, Dario kinda deserved having his Codex stolen for being such an ass.




	4. Ephemera / Chapter Three

  * So, this letter from the mom definitely is… a letter from a mom whose kid went off to school. And the postscript from the dad is definitely sketchy (and probably is coded, but not in any way understandable by even the Obscurists).
  * Yeah, even from that far away, the dad and Brendan are both dicks.
  * Wait, so… Jess just snuck out? That seemed way too easy, getting past what seems like non-existent security.
  * Again, Brendan’s a dick.
  * Oh, fun. Now Wolfe’s assigning everyone independent study (or something?). Not for stuff they’d like to do, but stuff he’s forcing them into based on skill sets, apparently. Well, everyone but Jess…
  * But for the main lessons, they’re learning how the Library ships book finds back to the Library. With… some sort of magic that works like pneumatic chutes (like at bank drive-thrus). Or something.
  * Dario’s still an ass, too. Because of course he is. Also, apparently he’s got a bit of a crush on Khalila? Oh, please, girl, stay away from him. You can do better than that.
  * Have I mentioned how much I hate Dario for picking on literally everyone?
  * OK, random new girl Morgan? So, she got delayed because she had trouble getting out of Oxford because of the war or whatever it is going on in the UK.
  * Change of plans from weapons training to running a raid on an illegal stash of books? OK…
  * I don’t like this Portero kid, either.
  * Oh, lovely. They’re raiding the house that Jess just robbed the other night… Because of course Jess’ dad probably had extra intel from all the fake cousins that there’d be a Library raid coming up.
  * Yeah, of course the sick wife isn’t actually sick…
  * Apparently Jess is (comparatively) really good at handling the magic for sending books to the library? So is that going to be his independent study?




	5. Ephemera / Chapter Four

  * OK, so there’s something extra screwy about Morgan’s admittance and her possible powers. Yeah, that’s gonna be fun.
  * So, Wolfe wants to Talk To Jess after the raid. That’s… not concerning at all.
  * Oh, that’s… not too bad? I guess? Wolfe’s just like “yeah, that was my bad not warning you how seriously draining this is.”
  * Even still, Jess’ quick recovery from the Tagging Drain was Unusually Quick. Apparently.
  * OK, what’s up with showing Jess the restraints? And why are they at the warehouse from the first(?) day?
  * Wolfe and Santi are apparently on First Name Basis. Hm… 
    * Also, the teasing… ~~I totally ship it. Hard. Even though at this point in the book, it’s mostly subtext.~~
  * Wolfe’s having Jess track Santi for a new test. OK…
  * And Jess is used to this sort of running because of his smuggling days. This isn’t suspicious at all…
  * Jess passed out from his headache that the test was giving him just after using a shortcut to catch Santi. OK, fun.
  * And why does it have to be Morgan to be there when Jess wakes up just because she’s got the wonky school schedule because she showed up late? 
    * Also, it’s been so long since I’ve actually read this, but I can’t remember if Morgan/Jess was an actual thing. I don’t really ship Jess with anyone, but if I had to Force A Ship That Isn’t Wolfe/Santi, I’d pick Khalila/Jess.
  * While Jess was unconscious, apparently Everyone Failed The Last Test, so now there’s going to be a really big candidate cut.
  * OK, the whole thing with the books they shipped back to the Library does sound kinda wonky…
  * So, groups two and four were called during the cut (leading everyone to think they were going) and the people who refused to draw for the cut were the ones to be sent home instead of anyone who drew tiles? This whole bait-and-switch was another test? OK…
  * And now there’s only nine candidates left, with three of them about to get cut. OK.




	6. Ephemera / Chapter Five

  * Oh? We’re getting a section of a research paper done by Wolfe? _AND THE LIBRARY FLAGGED IT AS BLASPHEMY?!_ OK, this changes things. It sounds like he’s being hard on the kids so that they don’t get in as much trouble as he did (and yet likely still trying to bring down the Library without getting into more trouble, since he has mentioned during everything with the last set of tests that Questions Should Be Asked About The Library’s Motives). Let’s see what this is all about…
  * OK, so he’s going off on the Obscurists? That’s Bad.
  * Apparently the Obscurists are rare? And why do I get the feeling that this is foreshadowing that one of the kids is an Obscurist-to-be?
  * Oh, and Wolfe’s proposing bringing back a version of Gutenberg’s printing press? Yeah, that’s Very Bad (according to the Library).
  * Artifex Magnus: Let’s Execute Wolfe and destroy his work. Obscurist Magnus: Destroy his work, sure. Hold off on the whole execution so we can interrogate him then use him as An Example. ~~(Also Because Reasons, apparently.)~~
  * Jess does have a crush on Morgan… Please no… I said it last chapter, but I really hate the Jess/Morgan ship and would rather it be Jess/Khalila if they really had to push the forced romance thing. Mostly because Morgan doesn’t seem to have much of a character yet, and it’s feeling more like instalove on Jess’ part (both reasons because Morgan just… showed up so late that she doesn’t really have enough chemistry with anyone and feels sorta forced into being an Important Part Of The Group… if that makes any sense).
  * Khalila likes Morgan better than Glain? And for a hot second, Khalila thought Jess had a crush on Glain? This whole thing is a mess…
  * Khalila’s also like “Morgan’s cooler than Glain, but be careful around her anyway since she’s Very Dangerous and Way Too Smart.” Make up your damn mind! At least she basically said what I was thinking about Morgan being too new to the group and not necessarily the most trustworthy.
  * ~~I’m only through the last Ephemera bit and two pages into chapter 5, and though for the most part I love this book, I’m already beyond done with these kids and their forced romances and forced drama.~~
  * It’s been a while since I read this, but Khalila/Dario is about to be a thing, isn’t it? What the hell does she even see in that douchebag?
  * Oh… oh no… Thomas has his mechanical table thingie set up, and now he’s questioning the purpose of the Obscurists, too… He’s screwed.
  * What’s Wolfe got up his sleeve today? This is about to be fun…
  * Oh, yay… more booby traps. This time, there’s a trip wire in the doorway. And there’s always a back entry because of course there is.
  * More booby traps in the side door? That’s lovely.
  * Oh, OK… this was the hideout of recently (like, that same morning recently) arrested Burners. That’s just great. Because this set of Burners were… planning some sort of terrorist attack or something.
  * Dario’s being an obnoxious (and this time drunk) roomie, so now Jess is escaping to the common room… and Morgan’s there because of course she is, just in time for one of those Not-A-Couple-Yet Bonding Moments.
  * So, Morgan’s the Obscurist-to-be… Yeah, her arrival, especially late as it was, definitely isn’t extra-suspicious now… 
    * Also, how the hell did Jess know Morgan’s magic was a sign of her being an Obscurist? Like, did that explanation end up being one of the deleted scenes? Because I definitely missed that explanation of how he figured that out in ten seconds.
  * In other news, Morgan’s a shitty liar.
  * Five bucks Wolfe at least suspects what’s going on with Morgan if not that he outright figured it out on his own. I mean, the dude’s not stupid.
  * Morgan’s got a knife and is totally prepared to fight Jess if she needs to. I mean, sure, given she came from living in a war zone, but who the hell let this bitch keep her knife? And how the hell did she get it past whatever massive security measures the Library likely has?
  * ~~Ugh… I can’t believe it, but I’m already complaining again about how the premise of this series is amazing but the only two characters who aren’t complete idiots are Wolfe and Santi.~~
  * OK, yep. Wolfe does know Morgan’s an Obscurist. But he didn’t get rid of her. Grrr…
  * Also, Jess, please do go through with your threat to get the High Garda to arrest this stupid bitch…
  * So… Morgan was using her magic to… hack the Codexes? Or something?
  * No, but seriously. Please get rid of Morgan. I get the whole “the-Library-is-shit-and-I-don’t-wanna-be-their-prisoner-and-I-wanna-be-normal” thing, but can she not be such a whiny brat about it? Like, five minutes, bitch was like “I’m from a war zone and I will cut you,” and now she’s all like “boo hoo woe is me I don’t want to be special.” She’s… too much of an emotional mess to really be interesting or useful.
  * OK, I’m kinda suspicious of this Scholar Tyler trying to help sneak Morgan into the school. I feel like there are Loads of Strings Attatched, and he’s totally going to betray her later.
  * Wait, Wolfe just… walked in on one of Morgan’s experiments with her powers? And that’s how he found out about her? So, not only is Morgan a shitty liar, she’s also shitty at being sneaky.
  * So, Jess from the book smuggling family who’s anti-Library and only has him there because of Business, and Morgan the secret Obscurist… Why? Why does this have to be a Canon Ship?
  * Jess is asking who he’d snitch to about Morgan because Wolfe already knows? I dunno, aren’t there other Scholars he could track down, or would they not want to hear anything from some lowly student?
  * Morgan’s going to try and fail out of the next test? Please. Please do. But of course it won’t work, will it? Because, you know, Plot Reasons.
  * These two idiots are trying way too hard to Not Get Caught that they’re making themselves look extra suspicious.
  * Dario’s up in the dorm room passed out drunk, Morgan and Jess are here in the common room drinking… I know they’re all from Europe and are currently studying in Egypt, but even with younger drinking ages abroad than here in the US, can we please not have all these kids drinking so much when they’re supposed to be at school and there’s a Looming Revolution?
  * I hate this Jess/Morgan ship. Have I mentioned I hate this ship?
  * And everyone gets woken up to an alarm going off. Because there’s an Emergency Not-Drill. An Emergency Emergency?
  * So, yeah, even if this isn’t the Final Cut, someone’s likely screwed, especially if they’re going to the top of the pyramid where these Important Offices seem to be.
  * Oh, wait… this pyramid is part of the Iron Tower, isn’t it? Yeah, someone’s definitely screwed.
  * Let me guess… if the lion statues outside the London Serapeum were bad, these Iron Tower sphinxes are worse.
  * Glain’s the only one not bothered by all the stairs because Of Course She Isn’t Because She’s So Athletic.
  * They’re meeting the Artifex Magnus. Lovely. Again, someone’s screwed.
  * OK… there are apparently some books that weren’t moved out of the Serapeum in the middle of the Oxford war zone… and these kids are going to be the ones to go retrieve them. Hooray for suicide missions.
  * This totally is the final cut mixed with a suicide mission, and apparently, student-wise, Jess, Morgan, and Glain are leading it. Lovely.
  * Again, Wolfe is one of the only two sensible people in the whole book, saying “hey, why the hell are you sending kids into the middle of a war zone?” even though he’d get in worse trouble for it.
  * “The Library’s always been full of dicks, you’ve just been too sheltered to see it.” Is that really basically what Jess just told Khalila? This is going to be fun.
  * Oh, fun. Santi found some message left with the now-dead contact Jess’ brother had in Alexandria. And of course Brendan’s still in town to shadow Jess.




	7. Ephemera / Chapter Six

  * Yep. There it is at the beginning of this Ephemera: Wolfe and Santi were together before Wolfe’s research got him in trouble ~~but probably are only pretending to have broken up? Or are actually broken up but will get back together because Fuck The Bosses. Also because they’re the only valid canon ship in this whole damn thing.~~ Although I do hope that Rachel Caine realizes that “boyfriend” would’ve been just as good of a description as “lover.” No, given info in the sequels, “boyfriend” would’ve been a _better_ term for their situation. GUYS CAN BE BOYFRIENDS WHEN THEY’RE GAY, RACHEL. GET OVER YOUR STUPID SELF.
  * Also, he really did just go “I’ll do my job but fuck all y’all for sending _children_ into the middle of a war zone.”
  * Oh, yay. Hidden tunnels with more scary automata.
  * So, they’re sending the kids to Oxford using the same magic/technology as sending books from raids to the Library… and apparently traveling like that is like a potentially deadly version of beaming in _Star Trek_. That’s a lovely mental image.
  * I don’t know Italian, but I did take enough Spanish in high school to know that the phrase Wolfe and Santi were using was something about a wolf… so I’m guessing it might be a family motto turned into a couple-y in-joke?
  * Oh… oh, no… Yeah, that Danton kid’s definitely proof that this is Deadly Beaming.
  * OK, yeah, “in the mouth of the wolf” is definitely a family motto-turned-couple in-joke. And Dario’s nerve trying to use it that way to hit on Khalila… I’m so done with this asshole.
  * Izumi got killed, too? That’s… yeah. Wait, no, she’s barely alive? Hoo boy…
  * Danton is Definitely Dead, though.
  * And here’s Wolfe, pretending not to care about kids dying and getting hurt already because He Has To.
  * Why? Why is Wolfe still defending Dumb Bitch Morgan?




	8. Ephemera / Chapter Seven

  * So yeah, Wolfe’s over here all “Formal Library Apology Letter to Danton’s Parents About His Death” and right away switching to “This is your fault, boss. Even if it was just one of your ‘unfortunate accidents.’ Fuck you.” 
    * And then the Artifex Magnus is just like “Yep. Totally was an ‘accident’ in the process of preserving the Library’s elitist bullshit.”
  * And now the shock of Danton’s death actually hitting… Oh, look. It’s our final group of kids.
  * Of course Dario’s still being an ass. Also, I’ll say it again: WTF does Khalila even see in him? (And what does Jess even see in Morgan, in a related repeated sidenote?)
  * “We can’t stop for a funeral because the Higher Ups Are Pushing Us Into The War Zone Too Quickly.” Because of course.
  * Is the temporary Full Librarian Status enough protection for the kids in the middle of a war zone? Because, y’know, war zone?
  * Wolfe’s still thinking everyone’s super fucked and trying not to show it. (I mean, he’s not wrong, after everything already.)
  * Oh, fun. Not only is everyone going into a war zone, they’re going there in the middle of shit weather.
  * Even better. They’re going into a war zone in shit weather while barely armed. If it wasn’t already obvious that the Artifex Magnus was setting everyone up to fail because he decided they’re all Too Dangerous To The Library, it’s slap-in-the-face obvious now.
  * Santi wasn’t kidding about everyone getting squished into the… truck? thing? like sardines. For four hours.
  * Looks like it’s Don’t Fuck With Santi Now Because High Garda Army Dude In A War Zone now.
  * Wait, this is the tenth war zone that the Library’s sent _Wolfe_ to? Yeah, the Library definitely wants him out of the way because of his Big Research Scandal.
  * Lovely. The Welsh Army’s only giving the bare minimum of assistance because Of Course They Are.
  * Fun times with the Promise-Not-A-Threat-off.
  * And now everyone’s walking Extra Screwed into the war zone.




	9. Ephemera / Chapter 8

  * So, yeah, even in 1750, the Library was up to their same bullshit of having people “die unexpectedly” after having a discovery they don’t like, even Obscurists.
  * Bleak and miserable war zone is fun.
  * No, but how seriously sheltered were most of these kids to not know the actual extent of how miserable the ordinary citizens were in the war zone?
  * “Rules say we can take as long as we need because Library.” “LOL, no. New rules say get out by nightfall because war zone where we’re all fucked.”
  * And of course the Library won’t provide refuge to the desperate ordinary peeps because they’re all assholes.
  * Of course this particular branch of the Library doesn’t have supplies to help the refugees because who wants to bet that the higher-ups don’t want to actually be charitable.
  * So, this stash of books was just… sitting in some supposedly disused storeroom that the Librarians found when looking for supplies for the refugees. The fact that this shitton of books was hidden there for so long until Ebele found it is a bit sketchy.
  * Wolfe and Morgan conveniently disappeared while the other kids had to sort the books for sending based on importance because of course they did.
  * “Morgan’s not my girlfriend.” OK, Jess, we all know that’s bullshit. (And the fact that you even like her is also bullshit.)
  * Of course the weather’s worse and the mob’s only going to be gone long enough to get reinforcements. Because why not make things more dangerous?
  * Even with trying to only tag the most important books, they still have to have Jess send a shitton at a time and get sick because of course there’s no time to do it any other way.
  * Wait, Portero’s still here? Dude. Please go away. Dario’s shitty enough with you around being his lackey.
  * Yep. Of course the mob’s back and bigger and attacking. And now they’re going to have to tag the kids like they do the books to get them out of the books? And it’s like Translating on steroids?
  * Oh lovely, they’re headed for one of the safehouses Jess’ family smuggling ring uses. Which means everyone’s gonna find out.
  * Ebele’s sacrificing herself? Really? We’re given what’s supposed to be a really good Strong Black Woman, and she’s FUCKING GETTING KILLED OFF IN THE SAME CHAPTER SHE GOT INTRODUCED IN? Really? This is why we can’t have nice things.
  * Wolfe’s over here like “I been knew you’re a smuggler after that arrest a while back but I’ve been covering for you like with Morgan. Also because that info could be useful.”




	10. Ephemera / Chapter 9

  * Oh, fun. The Obscurist Magnus knows about Morgan’s powers, and he’s ordering her to be kidnapped.
  * And that was a short ephemera interlude.
  * “So far, though, luck was with them.” LOL, not for long.
  * And now Jess and Company are trekking back through the freezing rain with what books they could take. And apparently the “muddy” streets smell like sewers. Who wants to bet that’s not actually 100% mud?
  * OK, now Jess’s “cousin” who runs the pub as part of the smuggling cover might actually be some sort of (possibly distant) cousin for real?
  * And of course Jess is gonna have to have some sort of interesting bargaining chip for his family’s help.
  * This Frederick guy thinks Brendan’s an ass, too? OK, good.
  * Well, this is great. Not only is the Obscurist Magnus’ lackeys after Morgan, so is her dad. And Mr. Hault got there first. And he’s obviously dangerous after living in the war zone for so long.
  * Yeah, the war’s definitely fucked Mr. Hault up mentally.
  * I’d say his brand of vigilante justice isn’t the right way to bring down the shit that is the Library, but, y’know, sequels ~~(although technically I’m only up to book two on my personal Goodreads)~~.
  * So, Mr. Hault turned to the Burner cause? Yeah, that’s lovely.
  * Well, that was… an abrupt end to the standoff. Also, I love Wolfe basically like “Not another word to my students or you’re dying next.”
  * Wait, I read that wrong? Mr. Hault’s not actually dead yet? God, I need sleep.
  * So, this is lovely. Nobody likes the Library Crew: Not the military earlier, not Frederick’s smuggling branch now…
  * Time to pull out a meme again:



  * Frederick’s all like “I didn’t sell y’all out!” but he did corner them with a “guide” in the middle of a now-blocked-off cemetery…
  * Oh, fun. Now Portero’s dead, and we’re down to the final six kids. ~~Although I seriously wish Dario and Morgan died with him…~~
  * And in the middle of the battle, some lady gave Jess a random baby that won’t end up going to safety like the mom wants.
  * So, the Library Crew managed to escape the city just as the battle started for real. Lovely.



**Author's Note:**

> See also https://mmcgui12sbookblog.home.blog/


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